MAY MEETING - Jenks Aquarium

Lightsluvr

Lightsluvr

Tangaroa to 500 gallons
Premium Member
I apologize for the anxiety that has been expressed here on the board regarding the May 8 meeting at the Jenks Aquarium. I have been dealing with the Aquarium's group sales department for several months and have approval for a large group from COMAS with some invited guests from the OMAS Tulsa club.

Last week I was given a price for the backstage tour which was shocking to me. I couldn't believe it was correct, so today I spoke personally with Kenny A., our host last year. Those who attended last year will remember Kenny as our tour guide who provided outstanding insight into the construction, filtration and internal operation of the aquarium.

Kenny informed me that due to the financial crunch being felt by everyone, the Directors of the Aquarium are seeking additional revenue so the facility can continue to operate successfully. One of the revenue sources identified by the Directors were the backstage tours. Kenny says this decision was made at the highest administrative levels and he has no control over the price.

So here is the deal for the club to consider:

If we wish to visit the aquarium as a group, we will be expected to pay the standard admission which I believe is around $15. Children are less, and I believe very young children are free. However, anyone who wants to participate in a back stage tour will be charged $50, which includes the tour and general admission. (!) Children who attend the backstage tour must be age 8 or older, and will also be charged $50.

Kenny is right - there is a crunch in the economy, and I'm not sure how many of our members are willing or able to pay $50 a person to visit the aquarium and participate in the backstage tour.

Please feel free to express your feelings in this thread which I will follow while I am out of town this week. Please also discuss the issue at the meeting on Saturday. If we have sufficient interest, we will book the visit and those who want can go on the backstage tour if they wish.

I am disappointed that the same "deal" we enjoyed last year is no longer available. Tours like ours have become very popular and a source of revenue for the aquarium.

LL
 
Wow - I'd say this will affect our numbers considerably.

With that said, I will bet we still have around 15-20 regular admissions - I doubt very few, if any will spring for the $50 "backstage" pass.

With that being said - I (and others in our club) will be looking forward to meeting you guys.

Do I still need to keep a headcount? It doesn't seem as valid at this time, since there is little to no discount.

Thanks for all your legwork on this George. The reef community can always use people like you willing to go above and beyond.

And not to sidetrack -- but we were planning on heading over to Oddballs afterwards, and I'm sure they would love to see their shop crammed with us nuts :)
 
I was really looking forward to potentially going behind the scenes and seeing how everything works there. But not for 50 bucks. I think I'd much rather use that money and pick some stuff up at Oddballs.
 
Also, on their website it states that admission is 13.95 with a 10% discount on groups of 25 or more. Are they honoring that?
 
Wow, you would think that if they were having money issues that they would lower that price instead of raising it. Raising it to me with this "economy" will just turn people away. But say if they were to lower it they could bring in a lot more people and even open to the public on certain weekends if it isn't already. I remember last year this was the "meeting of the year" for me just because my girlfriend and I had never been to the aquarium and being able to see all the work behind the scenes was really cool. Their tanks that weren't part of the aquarium with all the sharks and turtles was a highlight for me I think it was like a QT for them? Also being able to stand above the large shark exhibit was really cool. I also remember Kenny very well as he was very informative with our group and was an awesome guide. I would be putting myself on the list this year if I could, but my girlfriends graduation in on May 8th which isn't going to let us come :( Sorry for my rant :-/
 
They will honor the group price with the discount for a group of 25 or more. It just seems that the Directors see the behind the scenes tour as leverage for additional funds. At the meeting tonight, get a feel for folks still willing to do the tour, and I will be calling Kenny on Monday to make a proposal. It just seems to me the Aquarium would benefit from a group of 60-70 at, let's say $20 or $25 a person, including the tour, rather than a group of zero. Just thinkin'

Thanks for everyone's input.

LL
 
I definitely feel that our club would be more than willing to pay 20-30 versus $50. Just as a preliminary feeler, of all the people I've talked to, really only one or two have even shown interest - and it was pretty low interest at that.
 
The price is a joke! That would be $2500 for a group of 50. I could see if they were giving individual tours for $50 but if we get a lot of people the price should drop real fast.
 
I have been looking forward to this meeting since last year since I didn't get to make it then. Even though I really want to see how the place works, no way would I pay $50 for it...ever.
 
3 here for the regular tour and a negative on the 50.00 behind the scenes price. The pictures from the other years will suffice.
 
Lynn,

I have 4 that will go to the regular admission. and 0 of those for a $50 tour, however, I would be willing to pay say $25 each for the tour.
 
Heather and I are in for regular admission, but probably not the 50... hmmm lol it's funny, but the military tickets are cheaper than the group. Maybe we'll just meet yall there? haha :P
 
Was really looking foward to the behind the scenes tour since I missed it last year, but not for $50 dollars a person. They are really gonna miss out on alot of money if they are not willing to negotiate that rate, $25 is much more reasonable for such a large group.
 
What a Suprise

What a Suprise

First off thank you George for trying to organize this meeting. I understand and feel your pain in this situation.

Anyway I have wrote several responses about the $50.00 but decided to discard them all. Our club members are what make them great. I look forward to a group meeting in the future regardless of destination or topic. We can all meet in Tulsa and have a much better time.

My suggestion would be for everyone to pick a date and come to Tulsa, Meet at a park (Lafortune, Hunter, Chandler) cookout and get to know each other. I will buy the Hamburger patties and make sure there are a couple of grills and cold beverages for everyone.

This might be the big frag swap we have all talked about. I only offer this as a suggestion my involvement would be minimal. Me, Patties, Beverages thats about all I could promise. Logistics and details would have to handled by someone else.

Again George thanks for trying I understand the difficulties of the job.
 
The behind the scenes tour is really awesome but its crazy they are wanting to charge a marine and aquarium club that kind of money.I hope something can be worked out that will benefit all.
 
COMAS members - keep May 8 open for a road trip (daytime) meeting... if the Aquarium doesn't pan out, we are considering other offers...

John - will send PM as soon as we know something.

LL
 
Lightsluvr said:
COMAS members - keep May 8 open for a road trip (daytime) meeting... if the Aquarium doesn't pan out, we are considering other offers...

John - will send PM as soon as we know something.

LL
Click to expand...

Thanks for the update, George.

If all else fails we could always meet up with OMAS and go to Dave and Busters! Skii ball, beer, and coral nerds. I think it could be a pretty epic trip.
 
That's really interesting, looked online and saw places like seaworld don't even charge that much for a tour. =(
 
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